Kovalchuk returns after missing 2 games

ATLANTA - Thrashers All-Star forward Ilya Kovalchuk is back in uniform after missing two games with a knee injury.

Kovalchuk did not start in Tuesday night's game against the Philadelphia Flyers but he participated in pregame warmups and came off the bench early in the first period, then scored Atlanta's first goal early in the second.

Kovalchuk was injured in a knee-on-knee hit from Pittsburgh left winger Jarkko Ruutu last week, forcing him to miss games against Buffalo and Washington. Atlanta won both games.

An MRI on Kovalchuk was negative, and he had no serious swelling.